Steve McClaren was yesterday named the new manager of Dutch club FC Twente. The 47-year-old former England manager has signed a two-year deal to replace Fred Rutten at the Grolsch Veste Stadium, and one of his first tasks will be to lead them into the Champions League group stage.

McClaren has been out of work since leaving the England job last November following their failure to qualify for the finals of Euro 2008. He was closely linked with the vacant post at Blackburn in the wake of Mark Hughes' move to Manchester City, but after several weeks of talks with the Twente president Joop Munsterman, he has decided to relaunch his career on the continent.

McClaren said: "I am delighted to accept the offer to become the new manager of FC Twente. From our first meetings, I have found Mr Munsterman and his staff helpful and co-operative, and I cannot wait to get started working with them.

"It is an exciting time for the club having been so successful under Fred Rutten, and I cannot wait to meet my players and staff and get things going. It will be a huge challenge for me to work in the Dutch league and in the Champions League with

FC Twente, but I am excited by the prospect and believe we are feeling positive for the campaign ahead."

Nigel Pearson identified instant promotion back into the Coca-Cola Championship as his target after being named the new manager of Leicester City yesterday. Pearson, 44, becomes the sixth manager at the Walkers Stadium in the last 16 months and will take charge of the club's first ever season in English football's third tier.

"I am absolutely delighted to be here," he said. "The club has gone through a very difficult period of its history but it's a fabulous opportunity for me. My job now is to get this club back into the Championship."

Reading have confirmed that their winger Glen Little has signed for Portsmouth on a one-year contract. The 32-year-old missed the majority of last season with an achilles injury and turned down an offer to stay at the club.

Manchester City have announced they will play the home leg in the first qualifying round of the Uefa Cup at Oakwell, the home of Barnsley. City approached Barnsley officials last month about using Oakwell for the match because of the time required for the City of Manchester Stadium pitch to recover from this summer's events programme.